Foreigners may apply to stay under International Entrepreneur Rule — for now

United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director L. Francis Cissna speaks during the daily press briefing at the White House on Tuesday. Even though the Trump administration is starting to implement a rule that allows some foreign entrepreneurs to stay in the U.S., UCSIS said on its website that the Department of Homeland Security ultimately plans to propose ending the rule.

United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director...

Foreigners can apply to stay in the United States under a federal rule aimed at smoothing the path for entrepreneurs, immigration officials said Thursday.

This move comes a few weeks after a judge ruled in favor of a group of venture capitalists, entrepreneurs and companies led by the National Venture Capital Association, which sued the federal government for its unlawful delay of the International Entrepreneur Rule. In his decision, the judge wrote that the government must begin implementing the rule.

Under this rule, foreign entrepreneurs who meet certain benchmarks may apply for "parole”; in this case, this means that individuals who are not formally admitted into the U.S. (as they would be with a visa) can temporarily stay in the country. The rule was initially set to take effect July 17. But a week before that date, the Trump administration delayed its implementation because it intended to rescind it altogether.

Although the implementation of the rule may be welcome news to the tech community, it comes with a major caveat: The Administration is still working on plans to rescind the rule altogether. The Department of Homeland Security is currently in the final stages of drafting the proposed rule.

“Upon review, DHS is planning to propose to remove the IER because it is not the appropriate vehicle for attracting and retaining international entrepreneurs and does not adequately protect U.S. investors and U.S. workers,” the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services said on its website.